The Choosing (Percabeth AU)

1. The Ball

Ludas hall was filled with music and chatter and the rulers could be seen talking intently to each other.

"Athena really outdid herself renovating this Pallas " voices murmured in agreement."I agree, for a place where the Kingdoms signed their first treaty and where we have so many festivities, they really had let it go! Thank the Gods Queen Athena re-did it" replied an unfamiliar voice.

It was true, Athena had been in charge for renovating the 'Pallas Cyprus', she did it with pride and it bore great results.

The earlier cracked pillars had been replaced with glistening white ones,so white in fact, that your dentist would be proud. The halls of the Pallas had been made bigger and the guest rooms had been changed completely, with new king-sized beds installed in each room.

Overall, she restored the Pallas to it's former glory and much much more! Sparing no expense when it came to adding new features like the stables, common room, camp area and a huge intricate maze she had collaborated with Queen Demeter in making called 'The Labyrinth'.

Ludas hall was decorated with precision for tonight's festivities. Royal purple banners hanging over each column, with gold flecks on them that shone as the light hit them. The table cloths matched the banners, displaying various varieties of food from Chocolate soufflé to Foie grass.

The light jazz music playing slowly started fading into classical. The maids began taking rounds, a plate of food in each hand , cutting through the crowds of the Royals and Nobles wearing masks and ballgowns, waltzing with a partner they did not know.

Annabeth was walking through the crowd of masks and gowns, looking for her brother Malcom.He was lost among the huge crowd of people her mother had invited.

She noticed the music soften, into a light classical tune. She watched as couple came together , noticing out of the corner of her eye a wistful Queen Hera glance a look of longing at King Zeus, who was intently looking at the chattering women on the other side of the room.

The lights slowly began to dim and she turned around, only to have a cold, wet substance trickle down her gown.
She glared at the young man with in front of her,

" Can't you watch where you're going ? "

" You bumped into me and I'm supposed to watch where I'm going ?" , the man protested.

" Well don't you know you're not supposed to stand in between so many people with a dam drink in your hand!"

" I was taking this water to my brother over there before, you, my lady, bumped into me.",the man replied, gesturing to a relatively young looking person, sitting on one of the chairs at the far end of the hall.
Annabeth was thinking of a comeback when she realised she was in the midst of a dancing crowd, the stranger seemed to realise it too.

Everyone already had a dance partner.

Annabeth looked at the man from the corner of her eyes. He smirked at her and said ," Well, who am I supposed to dance with now?"

"Well I am the only wet Damsel here for you to dance with"

The dark haired stranger smiled and offered her his hand and they began to waltz in unison.

"Sorry about your dress m'lady, how about we go outside and I'll help you dry up"

"Excuse me?!" Annabeth half whispered as she punched him in the gut, In a way that no one else noticed.

The stranger looked flustered and his cheeks went bright pink."I.....well......Thats not.....wha....what I meant" he answered. " I thought we could go outside and i could help you wipe the water off with a tissue or something"

Annabeth laughed."you can't wipe the water off a dress", the stranger smiled, pulling her outside slowly through the crowd "lets find out".

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Annabeth watched as the stranger bent on his knees outside in the garden ,carefully trying to scrub the water off her dress and smiled.

Suddenly they heard thunder roar and the stranger grabbed her hand ,pulling her into the maze in the garden named the 'Labyrinth'.

It was huge.

Annabeth remembered her mother sitting at the table, pouring over blueprints with Queen Demeter. "the maze has a lot of dead ends and passages ,some paths can be narrow and other wide, some I have also designed to look like an optical illusion!" she recalled her saying

" The maze doesn't have a roof , dummy ", Annabeth laughed.

They ran deeper into the maze, laughing like lunatics.

They both stopped at a turn to catch their breath and Annabeth saw the man taking a step towards her.

He ended up tripping on a rock and Annabeth caught him instead. He tried to stand up, but the silly man ended up tripping on the hem of Annabeth's dress.

She caught him again, pulling him up, but somehow it ended up in a kiss, neither of them planning on stopping anytime soon.

"ALL CHILDREN AGES 16 AND UP REPORT TO THE LUDAS HALL IMMEDIATELY" blared out King Zeus's voice, causing the kissing couple to break apart, blushing.

They stared awkwardly at each other for a few seconds, neither knowing what to do

"Guess I've made you wetter than before" smirked the stranger, finally breaking the silence between them.

He shrugged off his blazer and tossed it to Annabeth. "Peace offering" he suggested, before running off towards the Pallas, Annabeth following him.

She realised with a start that the hall was much less populated than it was before., as she entered. The dozens of women and men in fancy outfits were gone, instead replaced by a handful of young people who looked about her age.

The kings and queens were all present.Standing at the head of the hall, looking as regal as ever.

She caught a quick glimpse at Malcom, who looked at her with a surprised expression.He gestured at the blazer wrapped around her shoulders, and her damp hair and dress.

He seemed to have noticed the stranger, his hair it seemed, was damp and jetblack. Annabeth ached to see his face, but he did not turn around.

She shrugged at Malcom, suddenly feeling her mothers questioning gaze.She immediately put herself to work on avoiding eye contact ,focusing instead on Queen Aphrodite, who seemed to be exploding with excitement.

Aphrodite clapped her hands, almost instantly seeming to gain the attention of everyone in the room. How could she not?She looked stunning ,with her diamond studded dress and her bright red lipstick, she looked like a Goddess.

"You must be wondering why we gathered you all here today young royals! Well It's to congratulate all of you of course!" she chuckled.

"You are all now, as of this moment, officially going to be a part of The Choosing! Pack your bags darlings, for since now all of you are going to be staying here! In the Pallas Cyprus! "

Thanks for reading!

stay tuned

-----------S &D